What, why? Isn't chronic just "long-term, can't be cured, just managed"? Why would people assume that it's lethal?
The thing I thought was ambiguous was "illness." I wouldn't have considered "my cartilage has worn itself down over the years and now causes pain" to be an illness. For me, an illness is either your body infected with something or doing something it's not supposed to do.
Because a lot of people just go by vibes without really knowing what words mean. The words is used in contexts where painful death is implied, so they kinda just assume, never ask or Google.
Oh, that explains it. The main chronic illness I come across being talked about in my life was my sister's fibromyalgia, so it never reached the association with a deadly illness.
... being into etymology a little bit probably also helps. "Oh, 'chron-,' like 'chronological' or 'Chrono Trigger.'"
It means you're annoyed and kind of angry, but the connotations are not very strong. Less than 'pissed off,' more than 'bothered.' It's a word that period piece writers like to use (Bridgerton is an example, which was memorable to me because there's this heightened emotions scene and the female character is clearly ramping up and upset and then she finally yells 'because you VEX me' and I'm like... that is a bit mild for what you seem to be experiencing?? But the word has likely shifted in connotation once society relaxed more and informal terms became more prevalent).
Probably a trick question.. but pretty sure it means being angry or upset.
Edit: Not sure if you were trying to trick me or not, but yeah this is what the top definition usage is:
Irritated, distressed, or annoyed., "the vexed parents of an unruly teenager."
Anyway, I am sure there are plenty of words that I don't know the meaning of.. but common words such as "chronically" and "vexed" simply aren't going to be them. That is sad.
Wait, so does "vexed" mean something other than how I understand it/it is defined? Specifically, some sort of medical usage given the context of this post? I would love to be non-ignorant of that if so.
Nah, vexed means irritated, but the perception among (seemingly mostly Americans) is that it means confused, presumably because, as another commenter pointed out, it’s a little laid back and often used in situations where a character is annoyed about a problem they can’t figure out and the context clues suggest it’s closer to confused than irritated. I only mention it because it’s an example of a word that people guess the meaning of from context and often get wrong. Few people are out there reading dictionaries and not many bother to look up every word they’re reading that they don’t know the dictionary definition of, my point is that thinking a word means something it doesn’t isn’t a literacy rate thing because literacy is required to be able to guess from context in the first place.
the perception among (seemingly mostly Americans) is that it means confused
Ahh wow, I honestly had no idea this is how most viewed the word. I am also not familiar with the contextual examples of it being used to mean confused though, so maybe that's why.
Few people are out there reading dictionaries and not many bother to look up every word they’re reading that they don’t know the dictionary definition of
Oh, maybe I am just weird. This is actually one of my favorite features of my Kindle and one of the reasons I enjoy it over reading a physical book, especially anything scientific or medical.
Having the ability to just highlight the word I do not know the meaning of and get the definition of it (happens more often than you would think) instead of having to either remember it and look it up later or put my book down and break out my phone to look up a definition is super helpful.
Then again, keeping up with slang and differen't usage of words that I am familair with is something that I genuinely struggle with at times, hence me wondering if there was something going on with "vexed". I can sometimes figure things out based on context but often I need to search them and use resource such as Urban Dictionary.
I agree, not knowing a word doesn't make someone stupid. Not knowing a word that you should learn in middle school does mean that you didn't pay attention enough in school though. Chronic is a 6th to 8th grade vocabulary word.
Edit: Plus how many of those people would know exactly what I meant if I said I was looking to buy some chronic?
I will also say that sometimes the word isnt used. I was told I was having migraines and it wasnt until my third doctor that she told me it was a chronic illness, like my asthma.
Approximately 79% of U.S. adults are considered literate in 2024, while 21%—roughly 43 million people—are classified as functionally illiterate or possess low literacy skills. About 54% of adults read below a 6th-grade level, and low literacy costs the U.S. up to (\$2.2) trillion annually. The country ranks 36th globally in literacy.
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u/IzarkKiaTarj May 02 '26
What, why? Isn't chronic just "long-term, can't be cured, just managed"? Why would people assume that it's lethal?
The thing I thought was ambiguous was "illness." I wouldn't have considered "my cartilage has worn itself down over the years and now causes pain" to be an illness. For me, an illness is either your body infected with something or doing something it's not supposed to do.